Lei Day: A Celebration Of All Things Hawaiian

In honor of Lei Day, We had a celebration of all things Hawaiian today with the help of Hawaiian Airlines and Montage Kapalua Bay.

Here's a look at some of our highlights:

Hula is a dance form accompanied by chant or song . It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Polynesians who originally settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance form.

There are also two main positions of a hula dance - either sitting (noho dance) or standing (luna dance). Some dances utilize both forms.

Hula is taught in schools or groups called halau. The teacher of hula is the kumu hula, where kumu means source of knowledge, or literally just teacher.

Hula dancing is a complex art form, and there are many hand motions used to represent the words in a song or chant.

For example, hand movements can signify aspects of nature, such as the swaying of a tree in the breeze or a wave in the ocean, or a feeling or emotion, such as fondness or yearning. Foot and hip movements often pull from a basic library of steps that come from other Polynesian; however, the hula is unique to the Hawaiian Islands.

HISTORY OF LEI DAY

Lei Day in Hawaii originated in 1927 with an idea popularized there by artist and writer Don Blanding, a mainland U.S. transplant who was taken with the Hawaiian custom of weaving, wearing and giving flower lei

Lei Day celebrations continue today, marking the first day of May with lei-making competitions, concerts, and the giving and receiving of lei among friends and family.

ABOUT LEI

The importance of the lei to the Hawaiian culture is that it is meant to represent the unspoken expression of aloha. Depending on the occasion "aloha" can stand for farewell, greeting, love, hope, or joy. These are only a few meanings, as there are no restrictions to the symbolic meaning they hold.

Each Hawaiian island has a different type of lei that is used for the celebration and for its people to wear, using different native vegetation that makes up the lei and different techniques of assembling them.

GIVING AND RECEIVING LEI

In addition to wearing the lei as a source of beautification, the lei were a way to distinguish groups of people from one another. The lei comes with a set of unspoken rules such as wearing it over your shoulders, not removing it while around the person that gave you the lei, and refusing a lei is seen as disrespectful. Over the years the lei has grown to become an accepted symbol of Hawaii that greets many visitors each year.

Hawaiian Airlines, with the help of our employee volunteers - Team Kokua – have actively participated in Lei Day each year.

We're offering a special promotion on Facebook called ‘Pick A Lei Flyaway' where one lucky winner will win 140,000 HawaiianMiles – that's enough for a roundtrip for two between any one of HA North American gateway cities and Hawaii! You simply have to pick a lei for a chance to fly away!

Rob Wilson serves as the Executive Chef of Montage Hotels & Resorts, and oversees the menus for their new property y in Maui, Montage Kapaula Bay.

Montage Kapalua Bay sits on 24-acres and features 50 all-suite residences offering spacious living rooms, large private lanais, fully equipped kitchens, elegant master suites and luxurious bathrooms that beautifully reflect the resort's Hawaiian heritage. Overlooking the picturesque Kapalua Bay, guests will be able to relax by the multi-tiered lagoon pool, which cascades down the center of the resort; or they can enjoy island-inspired cuisine in one of the resort's restaurants or lounges. A 30,000 sq. ft. Spa Montage serving up Hawaiian treatments infused with indigenous ingredients is also available. For more information, please contact Montage Kapalua Bay at (808) 662-6600; or visit the resort's website at www.montagehotels.com/kapaluabay